Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1887-01-24
Written for the HERALD.
About Poll Tax.


wing of business in the biennial ses-
sion. it is quite necessary that We should
commence at once 10 agitate all neces-
sary enactments to come before them
for our benefit. either by enacting new
statutes or repeating old ones. And
now let US begin to agitate at the be-
/ ginning of the session.
/ First and foremost on our Statute is
that relict of legislative barbarism-an
old Blue Law barnacle-that has fast
ened onto US, enforced in some towns,
in some disregarded. l mean the days
poll-tax on the road. 1t is more bother
to collect it than it amounts to. besides
it is in disregard of the principle Of
no property no taxation. A capitation
tax at best is but relict of the bar
barism of the medieval ages, and on
our Statute is only applied to road work
and creates an antagonism against
our whole road system. Let us examine
it. Your town clerk makes out your
road books. He ascertains as nearly as
| possible all who are subject TO poll-tax,
makes out his list and enters the names
on his books, charged with $3.50 as
days work. Mr. A. asks the overseer
of roads, what is my tax of four mills
on the dollar road tax Your assess
ment, sir, is $1,000, and your tax is
$4.oO, and one day poll-tax $3.50, in all
$3.50. | won't pay the poll-tax, he
says. All, but you will though when
you work the road-tax. The poll-tax is
the first l shall give you credit for; l
have got you sir. Then, on the other
hand you have a hired hand, possibly
you have made close bargain with
him for his services for the term you
have agreed upon to work. Now comes
your road overseer and says, II want
days work of you, SIR" II won't pay
it, is the reply. II am working for
MIR. A. for way-down wages and he said
nothing to me about this road-tax, if
anyone pays it let him pay It," In
Platteville they pay no attention or
don't bother one with the tax. never
was called on for it there and won't
pay it here.
The upshot of it is Mr.. A. says, /
can't afford to get the ill-will of my
hired help, if l do they can beat me in
my work, if the overseer of roads pro-
ceeds against them according to law,
more than the payment of the road-tax
amounts to. And he either goes on and
pays the poll-tax himself or when the
overseer of highways comes around in
the fall, he and the hired man conspire
together and lie him out of it. The
hired man treats the Boss next time
they come into town, and they call it a
devilish smart deal. 1t is case of
home local option. 1t learns people
to disregard the laws, it learns them to
be dishonest, and what little work is
wrung out by poll-tax, costs more than
it comes TO. 1t creates an antipathy |
against the whole system of road work
Therefore say, let our lawmakers
wipe it off the Statute Book; or if there |
are any old "blue-lights" who insist,
make it a matter of local option in the
towns, at the spring election. Still 1 |
;po;of that II &c hattor for onr raparol |
road system that the law should be en-
tirely wiped out. For all argument |
tends to show that it creates feeling of |
hatred between employer and employee
that has no right to exist, and inimical
to the interests of both in their arbitrary
social relations. / say arbitrary, be-
cause the relation of employer and en-
ployee on the farm or in the workshop
is such that it is highly necessary that
their social relation should be of an
amicable nature. Arbitrary because
their relations cannot in the nature of
circumstances be suspended at pleasure
and again resumed But some one says
how is it? Is visible property to pay
the whole expense of government, can
not we get some relief from this burden
of taxation, by making the able-bodied
men of the country put in one day on
the road or pay the dollar and half?
1t is true if they had any property we
would tax If Ills true that if they had
any real interests in the mending of the
highways that the tax would be worked